


break your mirror in two

by FreshBrains



Category: Orphan Black (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-11
Updated: 2013-10-11
Packaged: 2017-12-29 01:40:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 823
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/999360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FreshBrains/pseuds/FreshBrains
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alison’s breath was all wine and mint, only one of which reminded Delphine of Cosima.  Alison leaned in closer until everything but her face faded away, and then Delphine could only see Cosima—the same lips, the same eyes, the same chin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	break your mirror in two

Delphine knows Cosima’s body as well as she knows her own. She thought it was strange for a while—not bad, just _odd_ , because her own body responded so differently from Cosima’s. However much Delphine knew about erogenous zones and sexual fluidity, there was a part of her before she met Cosima that thought all women’s bodies were like hers—they writhed at the same touches, arched at the same kisses. 

But she was learning to catalogue the little differences, their preferences in kissing and fucking and cuddling. Cosima was tiny and tight and sweet, her muscles soft but solid, and Delphine spent hours letting her hands wander, mapping every inch of her smooth skin and kissing everything she could find—behind her ear, at the dip of her clavicle, and the place where her hip met her thigh. Not only was it intimacy of the best kind, it was an _adventure_ , every time.

So when she met the other girls, the other clones, it was even stranger.

“So you’re Cosima’s,” Alison said, tapping her chin. “You’re a lot taller than I thought you’d be.”

Delphine knows she isn't the only “good” monitor—Sarah, the surly one with long hair who stands in the kitchen with her little girl, is holding hands with a stern-faced, muscle-wrapped guy whose name she recognized from Leekie’s files. What a couple they made.

“Yes, well, sorry,” Delphine says, brushing her hair out of her eyes. 

Alison gives her another once-over. “Felix was right.”

Delphine felt her cheeks warm. She knew the other women didn't trust her, at least not yet, and she didn't blame them.

“You _are_ lovely.” Alison looked disapproving, her mouth turned in a grim line, and she turned and sauntered into the kitchen. Cosima smiled at her on her way out, and padded over to Delphine, her black-stocking-clad feet soft on the carpet.

“I saw you talking to Alison, that’s awesome! I was hoping you two would get to know each other.” She reached up and wound her arms around Delphine’s neck, giving her a peck on the lips.

Alison stood in the kitchen and glanced at Delphine, head still tilted like she was sizing her up.

“I don’t think Alison likes me,” Delphine said, trying not to pout.

Cosima squeezed Delphine’s arm and gave her another kiss. “She doesn't _not_ like you, she’s just…Alison. There aren't too many people she can trust anymore.”

Delphine nodded. 

For the rest of the night, Delphine could feel Alison’s eyes on her, Alison’s gaze following her around the room. But it wasn't like Delphine wasn't doing the same thing. She was never _not_ a scientist—she always found the need to examine, collect, analyze.

The clones were a different kind of science than just DNA and encrypted codes; they were a science in and of themselves. There were differences—like the way Cosima spoke like a dainty, overexcited bird ready to take flight while Sarah kept her words low and her arms to her sides most of the time. Then there were the little similarities besides the mirror-image faces—Alison played with a lock of her silky hair when she was nervous while Cosima did the same thing to a stray dread, winding it around her finger. 

This was a new kind of science for Delphine, and it was _fascinating_.

“I've seen you looking at me,” Alison said to Delphine later that night, after Sarah and her family had left and Felix was begrudgingly entertaining Alison’s kids in the living room (his smile betrayed him). 

“Excuse me?” Delphine said with wide eyes, but her cheeks burned red again.

“I mean, I haven’t been with a woman since college, but I suppose I’m flattered.” Alison waved her hand nonchalantly, as if this was a conversation she had often.

“I’m not…I don’t mean…” Delphine stuttered.

But she couldn't stop looking. Would Alison kiss differently? Would her fingers feel soft-yet-calloused like Cosima’s? Did she have a smattering of moles on her lower back; would her hair smell the same? 

“We could try, if you want. I've done wilder things in my time.” Alison’s breath was all wine and mint, only one of which reminded Delphine of Cosima. Alison leaned in closer until everything but her face faded away, and then Delphine could only see Cosima—the same lips, the same eyes, the same chin, differences in eyewear and makeup aside.

She backed away, bumping into the kitchen counter. “I don’t think so. I’m sorry, I don’t know what I was thinking.”

Alison smiled, but it was tight, a little disappointed. “Makes no difference to me. I always wondered how Paul couldn't tell. He’d been sleeping with Beth for years…” she trailed off, her eyes a little glassy. “But anyways. It doesn't matter.”

Delphine nodded, and stumbled out of the kitchen to find Cosima.

Some things didn't make sense, and some things couldn't be explained away with an experiment.

**Author's Note:**

> Title from "Tragic Mirror" by Sondre Lerche.


End file.
